Chapter 1, Days Summary and Analysis

In the jungles of Vietnam, the days of marching and sweeping villages are long and tedious for the men in O'Brien's company, Alpha Company. It is explained that marching in military lingo is "humping" and to march with items is to "hump" it, for example, a pack or military supplies. Sometimes the march is simply referred to as the "hump". O'Brien marches slowly behind his buddy Barney, a spry soldier who maintains a sense of humor under fire, humping along the trail cracking jokes. O'Brien's company fights fatigue and boredom on their marches as often as they fight Charlie. It is explained that Charlie is the Viet Cong, the North Vietnamese insurgents that the soldiers are constantly searching villages to eliminate. The search for Charlie leads to intermittent skirmishes that are over quickly. These long marches and rare encounters...